Monday, September 9, 2013

Syria update

Dear
Friends,

Today Congress is continuing to discuss
possible U.S. military action in Syria. The Senate is likely to vote on
authorizing the use of force in the middle of this week, with a House vote to
follow later in the week or early next week. Meanwhile, I am working with
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin on a bipartisan, bicameral bill that would
oppose the use of force at this time. You can read a short update on my efforts
hereand in the following write-up
at National Review Online:

Representative
Devin Nunes (Calif.)
Nunes, a member of the House’s right flank who is opposed to military
intervention, is working with Democratic senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia,
who is also opposed, to urge Congress to pursue a diplomatic response to
Assad’s use of chemical weapons. Nunes, like McCarthy, comes from a Western
district that’s deeply skeptical of the president, but he doesn’t want to
ignore the civil war. Rather, he’d like the administration to come up with a
long-term diplomatic strategy for the whole region. He and Manchin both hope
that anti-war Democrats and conservative critics can jointly seek a third way
on Syria.

Republican
hawks are worried that the Nunes-Manchin proposal could peel away support for a
strike, but no one knows at this point how much support their proposed
resolution might garner. In the meantime, keep an eye on Nunes as he works the
halls of the Capitol. If his plan gathers steam with conservatives, it could
kill the White House’s hopes of winning an authorization for war. House
Democrats, who are hardly rushing to support a strike, could be tempted to sign
on, and House Republicans would be able to tell constituents that they have a
plan to deal with Assad, even though they’re not for war. “If Obama’s
resolution is defeated, you may see members from both parties rally behind this
kind of legislation,” predicts one House Republican aide.